My Ántonia

Well-known as one of the greatest novels by American writer Willa Cather which is the final book of the "prairie trilogy" of novels by Cather:

My Ántonia

Plot Summary [1]

My Ántonia tells the stories of several immigrant families who move out to rural Nebraska to start new lives in America, with a particular focus on a Bohemian family, the Shimerdas, whose eldest daughter is named Ántonia. The book's narrator, Jim Burden, arrives in the fictional town of Black Hawk, Nebraska, on the same train as the Shimerdas, as he goes to live with his grandparents after his parents have died. Jim develops strong feelings for Ántonia, something between a crush and a filial bond, and the reader views Ántonia's life, including its attendant struggles and triumphs, through that lens.
The book is divided into five volumes, some of which incorporate short stories Cather had previously written, based on her own life growing up on the Nebraska prairies. The volumes correspond roughly to the stages of Ántonia's life up through her marriage and motherhood, although the third volume, "Lena Lingard," focuses more on Jim's time in college and his affair with Lena, another childhood friend of him and Ántonia.
The five books, in order, are:
- The Shimerdas - the largest book of all. It covers all of the time that Jim spends on his grandparents' farm, out on the prairie.
- The Hired Girls - the second largest. It covers Jim's time in town, when he spends time with Ántonia and the other country girls who work in town. Language, particularly descriptions, begin to become more sexualized, particularly concerning Ántonia and Lena.
- Lena Lingard - this chronicles Jim's time at the university, and the period in which he becomes re-acquainted with the lovely Lena Lingard.
- The Pioneer Woman's Story - Jim visits the Harlings and hears about Ántonia's run-in and fateful romance with Larry Donovan. The shortest book.
- Cuzak's Boys - Jim goes to visit Ántonia and meets her new family, her children and husband.

[1] wikipedia.org